Countries that would get involved in a Taiwan-China conflict should take steps to counter Beijing’s propaganda which says that China would not be defeated, a US military official wrote in a research paper.
Chinese propaganda on social media, along with the expansion of its military, is intended to convey the message to countries friendly to Taiwan that they could not defeat China in a conflict, and therefore should not become involved, US Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel Brian Kerg wrote.
Kerg, who wrote the paper for the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security where he is a research fellow, said that China observers should see Beijing’s “Joint Sword-2024A” military exercises held last month from that perspective.
Photo courtesy of the Ministry of National Defense
China would have policymakers in the US and elsewhere believe that resistance to a Chinese occupation of Taiwan would be futile, and therefore they should seek to encourage Taiwan to accept “peaceful unification,” he said.
Analysis of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army shows that although China is a military threat, it is not as big of a threat as Beijing would have people believe through its propaganda, he said.
However, if Beijing influence campaigns helps to reinforce beliefs about its power, then China would achieve its aims without the need to engage in military conflict, he said.
To prevent that from happening, policymakers and analysts should understand the nature and depth of Beijing’s influence campaign, and be aware of its relative vulnerability in the event of an attempted invasion of Taiwan, he said.
Policymakers should also work to dispel misconceptions about the strength of China’s military power, he said.
Although Beijing likely has the air and sea capabilities to blockade Taiwan, maintaining the blockade might also be strategically detrimental to Beijing and would damage China’s economy, he said, adding that a complete and long-term blockade would put great pressure on China’s military.
An amphibious assault on Taiwan would be larger in scale and more complex than the Normandy landings during World War II, and would require joint planning and coordination on a level that the various branches of the People’s Liberation Army lack the capability for, he said.
Countering China’s narrative must be pre-emptive, and policymakers must emphasize China’s vulnerabilities, so as to strengthen public support for assisting Taiwan’s defense, he said.
The resilience of US alliances and partnerships against Chinese aggression must be demonstrated, as well as the efforts to improve the effectiveness of Taiwan’s overall defense, he added.
The Taiwanese government should also make efforts to protect its public from the influence of disinformation, for example by teaching media literacy skills in schools, he said.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
RSS